One of India’s most successful cricket captains and the one who is credited to transform the Indian team into a world-beating force, Sourav Ganguly has been unanimously elected as the new Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president. Ganguly formally took over as the BCCI President at the BCCI’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Mumbai on Wednesday.
It’s official – @SGanguly99 formally elected as the President of BCCI pic.twitter.com/Ln1VkCTyIW
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 23, 2019
It is worth highlighting that Ganguly is only the second cricketer after Maharaja of Vizianagaram to take charge as BCCI President.
Ganguly, a veteran of 113 Tests and 311 one-day internationals, arrived at the BCCI headquarters In Mumbai on Wednesday for the Annual General Meeting where he officially took charge as the President. Notably, Dada had filed his nomination for the role of BCCI president after a dramatic turn of events in a meeting earlier this month.
“I am happy with the appointment because this is the time when BCCI’s image has got hampered and it’s a great opportunity for me to do something. Whether you are elected unopposed or otherwise, it’s a big responsibility because it is the biggest organisation in the world of cricket. India is a powerhouse. It will be a challenge,” Ganguly had said earlier.
Wednesday will also be the last day of the Committee of Administrators (CoA) in office since the Supreme Court had earlier directed that the CoA tenure will end after new BCCI office bearers are elected.
CoA member Diana Edulji, while arriving at the BCCI headquarters for the AGM told reporters, “I am very happy that a cricketer is going to be the president and I hope he takes it forward to great heights.”
However, with only 10 months left before he gets into his cooling-off period, Ganguly’s first tenure as the head of the Indian cricket will be a short one. According to the amended constitution of BCCI, an administrator can only serve six years on a trot and he has already been serving as the President for the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB). But that doesn’t worry an excited Ganguly who is all geared up to take up his new challenge.